Organizations function like human immune systems, requiring balance to stay healthy. Just as our bodies need the right response to threats - not too weak, not too strong - organizations must properly identify and respond to challenges.

When organizational immune systems malfunction, they create problems:

• Under-reaction → missed opportunities
• Wrong responses → unnecessary obstacles (like allergies)
• Overreaction → inflammation through excessive rules
• Attacking own people → organizational cancer

Military organizations exemplify this tension, balancing:

• Flat operational structures that encourage innovation
• Complex bureaucratic systems for service responsibilities

The key is maintaining healthy tension between these systems while avoiding the extremes that damage organizational health.